I have a confession to make.
Up until recently, the only blended drinks that would catch my attention were in a pretty cocktail glass with some kind of fancy garnish…. I’m talking Porn Star Martini, Cosmopolitan, you get where I’m coming from.
Then I met Benny Button.
I was hosting the Harcourts property management conference day in Victoria and Benny Button was our special guest. Their session was all about wellbeing and mental health, and Benny Button's Dr. Adrian Medhurst and Troy Mansell were sharing their health and fitness regime. When they got to the part about nutrition, I was keen to hear what secret formula they would impart that we could take away and implement into our daily lives. They were full of energy and vitality – I wanted what they were having!
Karmen Costigan - Head of Property Management, Harcourts.
I must admit that when they said ‘Green Smoothies’ were the answer and that purchasing a Nutribullet was life-changing, I was slightly deflated. Surely Troy and Adrian weren't referring to the murky, gluggy concoctions that people pretended to love drinking.
I’d been down this path before; I’ve tried wheat juice (mashed up grass), cholorphyll juice (felt like a failed science experiment) and now I needed to blitz kale before breakfast!? I made a mental note of what he had said, then at afternoon break I went straight to the coffee machine for my energy boost. Change, after all, does take time.
It was only a few weeks later that I found a Nutribullet in Coles (random, who knew they even sold them!?) My daughter convinced me to buy one for all the healthy drinks she wanted to make (to date, she still doesn’t know how to turn it on). But she is a master manipulator, so I caved and bought it.
What can I say? The Benny Button team was 100% right!
My morning green smoothie takes about two minutes to prepare, and my focus levels have improved substantially. I have an abundance of energy and am surprised that I don’t get hungry until lunchtime.
What’s my recipe?
I don’t measure anything, but I love a combo of baby spinach, chopped kale, fresh ginger, lemon, cucumber and celery. The ginger and celery provide a nice zing and you don’t need to add anything sweet because it’s got such a fresh flavour.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m still up for a fancy cocktail at the end of the day but I’m so happy that now I’ve found my drink of choice for the start of the day too!
Karmen Costigan is head of Property Management for Harcourts Australia and a passionate advocate for the wellbeing of her team.